Railway switch



DOs

Feb. 1-], 1941.

RAILWAY swnon Filed Oct. 24, 1939 INVENTQR VANGEL THEOD05 M TTORNEY5 Patented Feb. 11, 1941 UNITED STATES MEN orric 2 Claims.

This invention relates to railway switches, and

has for one of its objects improved structure in a switch in which provision is made for quickly replacing the several portions of a switch that are most susceptible to wear without requiring re placement of the entire switch. Another object of the invention is the provision of an elongated casting formed with a recess for supporting a plurality of blocks therein forming continuations and improved means for removably securing said blocks in said recess. Other objects and advan tages will appear in the specification and drawing annexed hereto. l i

In the drawing, Fig. 1 is a plan view of the portion of the switch carrying the movable tongue, and Fig, 2 is a reduced size plan viewof the mate for the switch shown in Fig. 1. Fig. 3 is a sectional view taken along line of Fig. 1.

Fig. 4 is a sectional view taken along line d l of Fig. 1.

Fig. 5 is a sectional view taken along line 55 of Fig. 1. Fig. 6 is a sectional view taken along lin 65 of Fig. 1. I

Fig. 7 is a sectional view taken along line l'! of Fig. 1. I

Fig. 8 is a sectional view taken along line 88 30 Of Fig, 1.

Fig. 9 is an enlarged sectional view taken along line 9-9 of Fig. 2. I

Briefly described, the main switching portion in a railway track, includes a movable tongue for directing the wheels of a car from one rail section to another at one side of the track while at the side of the track opposite the said main switching portion there is a mate for said portion that closely resembles the latter, except that a frog point is substituted for the movable tongue, and said point is fixed in a position permitting the wheels of a car to continue on one pair of rails of the track or to be diverted to the other pair joining at said switch, according to the position to which the tongue of the switching portion is moved. In the switching portion and in the mate, the principal distinction resides in the movable tongue in the former, which is fixed in the latter. In eithercase, however, the maximum wear occurs adjacent the point of the tongue, or in the frog point, while in the switching element there is also substantial wear at the pivoted end of the tongue. My invention provides for the rapid removal and replacement of those parts in the switch wherethe wear occurs, without disturbing the connection between the switch and ties carrying the same.

In the drawing Figs. 1, 3 to 8 relate particularly to that portion of the switch carrying the movable tongue, while Figs. 2 and 9 relate to of the rail heads at opposite ends of the switch,

the mate for the aforesaid portion, in which there is a fixed frog point.. Insofar as Fig. '7 is concerned, a section line taken on Fig. 2 in the same place as line 'I'! of Fig. 1 would show the same construction as in Fig. 7.

In detail, referring to Figs. 1, 2, in each instance I provide a main base I comprising a one piece, horizontally elongated casting longitudinally recessed in its upper side to receive a pair of elongated blocks formed with tread portions for supporting wheel treads thereon. The recess so formed varies slightlyin the two figures, but both have the common feature of upwardly facing shoulders 2 for supporting similar, downwardly facing shoulders formed on the blocks, whilethe remaining adjacent sides of the recess and blocks are spaced apart and filled with soft metal, such as babbitt, indicated at 3. The uppermost edges of the blocks and the sides of the recess are flush, and substantially join each other; hence notches 4 are cut in the edges of the blocks at widely spaced points for pouring the melted, soft metal into the recess and the shoulders 2 are likewise cut away at spaced points as at 5 (Figs. 6, 9), to permit the babbitt to flow into the space below the blocks and at the sides of the latter. Thus the blocks will be directly supported on the shoulders of the base and held in position by the engaging upper edges of the sides of the recess and blocks, while the babbitt will form a solid, incompressible packing for the blocks that will cooperate with the base to contribute to the rigid support of the blocks in the recess in said base.

Referring more specifically to Figs. 1, 3 to 8, I provide two blocks in the base recess, said blocks being indicated at 6, l. The block 6 has an extension 6' at one end and block 1 has an extension 1 at its end adjacent block 6, which extensions abut. each other at 8. The upper sides of blocks 6, l, are recessed at 9, 9'. respectively, in direction longitudinally of the base for receiving the opposite end-portions of the tongue 10 of the switch therein. The bottom of the recess in base I is elevated at the portion centrally between said end portions for supporting said central portion, as indicated in Figs. 1 and 5, the upper surface of said elevated portion of the base being flush at its end edges with the bottoms of recesses 9, 9.

The end portion of the tongue I0 that rests on the bottom of recess 9, is provided with a depending pivot ll rotatably fitted in a bushing l2 that is secured in coaxial, vertically disposed openings formed in the bottoms of the recesses in block I and block 6, as best indicated in Fig. 6, and the end of tongue Ill adjacent said pin or pivot I I is curved, as at [4, to fit against the similarly curved end of recess 9. The line of the curved end [4 is about the axis of pin 1 I as a center, thus permitting the pointed end of the tongue to swing back and forth transversely of the recess 9 in block 1 upon actuation of a switch bar I5. The switch bar I5, is best indicated in Figs. 1 and 4, and extends horizontally through coaxially aligned openings I6 in one of the sides I of base I and in block I for securement to a downwardly depending lug II formed on said tongue.

The end of base I adjacent the pivotally supported base of the tongue I0 is integrally formed with a. pair of elongated, members I8 that extend divergently from the main portion of the base. The cross-sectional structure of these members corresponds to that shown in Fig. 8, which latter figure represents the structure of a single similar extension I9 integrally formed on the end of the base I nearest the point of tongue It. The members I8, I9 respectively, are formed with a base ZI on which is supported the base 22 of a rail section (Fig. 8). Also a vertically disposed web portion 23 is integrally formed with base 2! and extends upwardly therefrom, and a laterally opening recess 24 is provided at the juncture of portion 23 with base 2| for receiving one of the flanges of the rail base, thus permitting the web 24' of the rail to be clamped by bolts 25 directly against the web portion 23. The heads 26 of the rails extend above the upper ends of the web portions 23, and said rails are preferably of the type formed with a wheel flange receiving channel 21 for receiving the wheel flanges of car wheels, said channels functioning as guard rails.

The upper surfaces of the heads 26 of the rail sections adjacent block 6 are level with the surface of the block 6 and said block is recessed at 28 in alignment with the channels 27, as best indicated in Figs. 1 and '7, so that the flanged wheels may freely pass from the block 6 onto the rail sections, and vice versa. Also the block I is likewise recessed at 29 in alignment with the channel 21 in the single rail that abuts the base I and block I at the opposite end of the switch.

The blocks 6, I are secured in the recess in base I by pins 30 (Fig. 5) that extend slantingly through aligned openings in the edges of the blocks and and in the side of the recess in said base I adjacent said edges. The pins 30 may be slightly tapered so as not to pass completely through the openings. Also each of said pins is formed with a slot extending transversely therethrough and in direction longitudinally thereof. Each pin is driven into a pair of the aligned openings, and then wedge 3| is driven downwardly through the portion of the slot in said pin that projects outwardly of the outer side of the base I, after which the wedge is welded in place by weld 32 and any portion of the pin projecting above the upper surface of the blocks is ground off. The blocks are thus rigidly held against displacement and removal from the base I. If desired, bolts 33, 33 may extend horizontally through the extensions 6', I respectively of the blocks 6, I and through the sides of the base I adjacent thereto, if desired, as indicated in Fig. 1.

In the mate indicated in Fig. 2, the frog point 34 is formed integrally with a block 35 secured in the recess in base I, and block 36 abuts the block 35 adjacent the frog point, which block 36 fills the remainder of the recess in base I. The blocks 35, 36 are secured to base I in the same manner as described for Fig. 1, and extension IB', I9 are formed at the ends of block I (Fig. 2) as in Fig. 1. The blocks 35, 36 are formed with recesses 28, 29' in their upper sides in alignment with the channels in the rail heads. The said recesses 28 join at the frog point to continue as the single recess 29' and the frog and portion of the blocks at one side of said recesses form the wheel supporting surfaces that carry the car wheels across the blocks from the rail section at one end to the rail sections at the other end, or vice versa.

In operation, in the event the tongue III is excessively worn, the same is quickly removed and replaced without disturbing the remaining parts of the switch, or if the block is worn, it is readily removed from the base I by merely loosening bolt 33 and removing the pins 3!! that secure the block in said base I. Likewise block gsmsay be replaced and the same is true of blocks Heretofore, efforts have been made to provide a removable block in a base member, but insofar as I am aware, no one has made it possible to remove and to replace various portions of such block, one of which carries the tongue pivot, and the other of which may support the point of the tongue or an extension of the block that carries said tongue.

Having described my invention, I claim:

1. In railway switch construction, an elongated base member at the switching point formed with an upwardly opening recess in each end portion thereof, a pair of blocks respcctively positioned in each recess, a pair of rails extending divergently from one end of said member and a single rail extending from the opposite end thereof, the upper sides of said blocks being formed with a wheel tread supporting surface in longitudinal extension of the rail nearest thereto and a wheel flange receiving recess formed in each block alongside each of the Wheel supporting surfaces for passage of car wheel from the rails onto the blocks, a switch tongue supported at one end on one of said blocks and extending at its opposite (and onto the other block, means pivotally mounting said one end on said one, of the blocks for swinging movement of said opposite end on the other block, said tongue being arranged and adapted to support a car wheel for movement from the wheel tread supporting surface of the block nearest said single rail to one or the other of the tread supporting surfaces of the other block according to the direction in which said other end of the tongue is swung, said other end of said tongue being supported on the block nearest said single rail, means separately securing said blocks in said. recesses for removal of either block independently of the other, a portion of said base directly supporting thereon a length of said tongue that is disposed between the op posite ends thereof.

2. In a construction as defined in claim 1, a portion of each of said blocks at their adjacent sides being in abutting relation.

VANGEL THEODOS. 

